JPD and Capitol Police Chiefs Pledge Collaboration on CCID Expansion

In a rare sight for the public, the two chiefs of the Jackson Police Department and Capitol Police met with members of the Jackson City Council to ensure further collaboration will occur once the expansion of the Capitol Complex Improvement District closes Strength occurs seven weeks.

Starting July 1, Capitol Police, a state unit of the Mississippi Department of Public Safety, will have jurisdiction as far north as Northside Drive and as far south as Raymond Road. Questions remain about what this expansion of jurisdiction will look like for cooperation between the two law enforcement agencies and what impact it will have on residents.

Some of those questions were answered during a meeting of the Jackson City Council’s Public Safety and Parks Committee on Thursday. Both Chief Joseph Wade of the Jackson Police Department and Chief Bo Luckey of the Capitol Police answered some questions from council members and appeared to have a working relationship.

A map showing the Capitol Police's jurisdiction. The red indicates the current jurisdiction of the Capitol Police. The blue shows the areas of Jackson whose jurisdiction will be expanded starting July 1.

Both bosses admitted that sharing responsibility would be a “unique” task. It’s been a controversial topic in Jackson lately. Some residents are advocating for an increased police presence to curb Jackson’s ongoing crime problem. Others expressed fear of the Capitol Police, whom they described as aggressive, violent and unfamiliar to residents.

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As Capitol Police jurisdiction expands, certain areas of each district will continue to be left out, most notably Districts 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, which contain a large portion of the city’s Black population.

The main message from Wade, who brought with him more than ten senior JPD officers; His department isn’t going anywhere.

“We (JPD) will continue to maintain a presence within the CCID. We won’t give up…” Wade said. “But it does give us the opportunity to deploy our resources in some high crime areas within the city of Jackson, but again we have to be strategic about it… It’s a situation that we can navigate ourselves as long as we’re willing to do it.” on To sit at the table and have a conversation about how we move forward together.”

Capitol Police Chief Bo Luckey agreed with Wade.

“Chief Wade is exactly right and he has been great to work with since he became chief of the Jackson Police Department. He and I have a very close relationship. We talk regularly,” Luckey said. “We are always working together and trying to make sure we are able to provide a cohesive, collaborative effort for the entire city of Jackson.”

JPD also continues to handle the city’s 911 calls, Wade said, so they will continue to respond to them.

Specifically, Wade said more resources will be focused on neighborhoods such as South Jackson, the Queens-Magnolia Terrace neighborhood in northwest Jackson and the Presidential Hills neighborhood

One issue that has been raised is the fact that the Capitol Police only enforces state laws, not the city of Jackson’s ordinances. Ward 6 Councilman and Council President Aaron Banks asked if an agreement could be reached so that Capitol Police could also begin enforcing city ordinances.

Both Wade and Luckey agreed to discuss the topic.

“At the end of the day, and I understand your point, when a citizen dials 911, they don’t know whether it’s a city ordinance or a state ordinance,” Wade said. “I agree that we need to cast a wide net in dealing with this situation. That’s a conversation I’m willing to have.”

Current crime statistics shared

At the end of the meeting, the council heard some of the JPD’s latest crime statistics after Safiya Omari, Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba’s chief of staff, made it clear that crime has declined so far in 2024.

Overall, crime in the city is down 22.2% compared to this time last year. According to Lacey Loftin, a data scientist at JPD, violent crime is down 40.5% and poverty crime is down 15.84%.

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However, there are always murders in Jackson. There have currently been 44 murders this year, compared to 39 from January to May 2023. However, the chief was quick to point out that “24 of those 44 murders were committed by acquaintances, family members, friends and loved ones.”

“So if you take away the 24 from the 44, we would be at 20,” Wade said. “But we need to change the mindset and culture of violence of people who know each other and take each other’s lives.”

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